The Holly And The Ivy

Day 61: I would not even consider cutting a live tree for Christmas, not even if I didn't have a curious Cat, but as for the Holly and the Ivy, I encourage you to cut, cut, cut to your heart's content. Saw through the largest trunks of ivy close to the ground. Remove a one-foot section. Quite possibly, you'll have saved a tree's life. Pick the berry-bearing branches of the Holly, as many as you like. The birds have plenty else to eat, and you'll slow the spread by eliminating their seed-rich eliminations. The Holly and the Ivy may be celebrated in song, but they are not welcome in our woods.

Pond Slider

Day 211: Pond Sliders (Trachemys scripta) are an invasive species. Once sold in pet stores, many of them have been released into the wild by owners who became bored with turtle-keeping, and now they are proliferating in many lakes here in the Pacific Northwest. It's been several years since I spotted and identified my first one at Lake St. Clair, and I've watched the population grow. For that matter, I've watched the turtles themselves grow from palm-sized youngesters to foot-long behemoths like this long-clawed male. He was sunning himself on a floating log where I had seen three earlier in the day as I passed by two women kayaking together. They engaged me in conversation, and I mentioned the invasive nature of these turtles, and was shocked to hear one of the women respond, "I'm glad I rescued one I found a few weeks ago." This is the attitude of too many people when it comes to invasives. Plants are "pretty," turtles are "adorable." No thought is given to the damage they are doing to native populations and habitats, and regrettably, education appears to have no effect on the individuals who won't look beyond the visual appeal of cute varmints and showy weeds. Our short-sightedness will be our undoing for, as any turtle will attest, slow and steady wins the race.

Forget-me-not When Pulling Weeds

Day 240: No matter how cute or pretty you think they might be, the fact is that three-quarters of the eight species of Myosotis found in Washington are non-native. In fact, the two native species both have much smaller flowers than the Forget-me-nots familiar to most of us. The six offenders are subtle and sneaky invaders. You might be tempted to leave a few in your garden beds for colour, not noticing that after the blooms have disappeared, tiny burrs stick to your socks and bootlaces when you brush against the stems. These "hitchhikers" detach as the barbs dry out and become brittle, dropping at their leisure to create new settlements for their kind. Forget not the Forget-me-nots when you're pulling weeds, and be sure to bag them because the seeds can mature even after the plant is uprooted.

Symphytum Officinale, Common Comfrey

Day 229: Let's get one thing straight right here at the onset. I don't give a flying ding-dong how useful Comfrey is as a medicinal herb. The fact is, Symphytum officinale is a mettlesome and persistent invasive, and the property next door to mine is full of it. I have been fighting its spread into my yard for over thirty years, but because the owner of the land does nothing to control it, it continues to spring up on my side of the fence. Unfortunately, the county does not mandate treatment of it. From a distance, it could be mistaken for our native "bluebell" Mertensia paniculata, but closer examination of or contact with the stems will quickly demonstrate otherwise. The fine, stiff hairs (inset) are very prickly and irritating to the skin as anyone who has tried to pull it will attest. It has a long taproot which must be dug out entirely to prevent the plant from coming back. I can only hope to keep my yard free of it. As for its likely incursion into adjacent properties, the other neighbour and the county are on their own.

Pentaglottis Sempervirens, Green Alkanet

Day 208: Tiny bright blue flowers always command my attention when I am looking for invasives. There are a lot of species with similar blooms, and people generally dismiss them as "forget-me-nots," not understanding that they could be from different genera. Most fall under Myosotis, the true forget-me-not often cultivated as a garden plant despite being considered invasive. Then there are Hackelia and Lappula, both "stickseeds," both native, but thoroughly obnoxious as their common name might suggest. There is also Brunnera, another garden plant which is easier to control than Myosotis and touted as a substitute for it. And then there is Pentaglottis sempervirens (above, also known as Green Alkanet or Evergreen Bugloss), with its prickly stems and lush foliage which forms large clumps. It is a member of the Borage family, and is also invasive. I was not happy when I found it in a small park in Eatonville. All of the above produce flowers which are pink upon opening, and which mature to a bright, attractive blue. The flowers of each are followed by tiny burr-like nutlets which attach to socks and animal hair with a vengeance. This mechanism facilitates the plants' spread, and is another example of why it is important to "de-seed" your clothing before leaving an area where the plants occur. "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," as the saying goes.

Ochlodes Sylvanoides, Woodland Skipper

Day 338: The Woodland Skipper (Ochlodes sylvanoides) was one of the first butterflies I learned to identify. At the ripe old age of 6 or 7, I had not yet discovered the joys of Latin and knew it only as a Skipper, and was intrigued by the fact that although it looked rather like a moth, it was in fact a butterfly. The position in which they hold their wings sets them apart from other Lepidoptera with the forewings held upright and the hind wings often displayed almost horizontally when at rest. I know now that this peculiar arrangement allows them to fly faster than other butterflies, a detail which goes a long way to explain why I had so much trouble catching them as a child. I also know now that they nectar on flowers not commonly used by other butterflies such as aster and goldenrod, and that their larvae feed on various grasses. This last tidbit of knowledge comes with an addendum: they are particularly drawn to the invasive Reed Canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea), a preference which pulls them away from the native species with which they would have interacted otherwise. Although at first glance, it might seem like a good thing to have larvae consuming an invasive, feeding on the plant may not fulfill the butterflies' nutritional requirements, resulting in a weakening of the species over time. My personal observations suggest that the number of Woodland Skippers has declined since the days of my youth, at least here in the Pacific Northwest.

Creeping Charlie, Glechoma Hederacea

Day 202: Cheerful though he may be, Creeping Charlie (Glechoma hederacea) has plans to take over your lawn and garden. It has a long list of regional common names: ground-ivy, field balm, gill-over-the-ground and my favourite, run-away-robin. It is a member of the Lamiaceae family, and is related to mint. Now those of you who have ever grown mint will have a better picture of what I mean when I say it is "persistent." You're still digging out bits of that peppermint you planted twenty years ago, aren't you? Creeping Charlie takes "persistent" to a whole new level, one which makes your peppermint seem tame by comparison. It is almost impossible to eliminate without resorting to herbicides due to its vining nature and an extensive root system. Even tiny fragments of root are capable of generating new plants, so hand-weeding it is pretty much out of the question unless you have nothing better to do with your time. The only environmentally responsible course of action is to resign yourself to keeping it out of flower beds and letting it have the run of your yard. The good news is that it can be easily cut with the dullest lawn mower blade.

Weed 'Em And Reap!

Day 195: "Weed 'em and reap!" For the third year running, I have been chosen as a recipient of the Sarah Reichard "Extra Mile" Award for my service with the Invasive Plant Council. On my way home from an invasives patrol yesterday (more on that in a subsequent post), I stopped to pick up my mail which included a $50 gift certificate to REI. Equal awards are given to the top three achievers, i.e., those who have devoted the most hours and have hiked the farthest in the interest of locating, removing and reporting invasive species. I haven't kept track of the number of miles or species I've logged, but since we went to on-line reporting in 2016, I've turned in 498 reports of invasives on western Washington's public lands. That said, I've noticed an astonishing lack of cooperation on the part of the agencies administrating these lands insofar as making an effort to eliminate noxious weeds even when the species are listed as Class A (mandatory control). In some cases, it's a matter of interpretation of jurisdiction: who owns the Knapweed-covered gravel bar in the middle of the river? Who is responsible for sending out a team to pull, spray, dig in an area below high-water mark? Especially in areas where weed seeds can be transported for miles on a waterway, this is an issue which is not being adequately addressed by the state weed control board. That said, even if my patrols do no more than raise the government's awareness of a rapidly expanding problem, it's a push in the right direction. I love what I do, even if it sometimes leaves me wanting to tear my hair out and scream.

Penny Perspectives - Lotus Micranthus

Day 249: Even little plants can be invasive. Lotus Micranthus is a teeny-tiny pea with ambitions of world conquest. It occurs profusely in disturbed soils in Mount Rainier National Park, particularly along roadsides and in the traffic islands at Longmire. Also known as Small-Flowered Lotus, it is a legume and bears multiple tiny "peas" in each of its seed pods. When ripe and dry, the pods may burst with a sharp snap, launching an explosion of seeds into the surrounding areas.

Unenviable First Record

Day 246: Here you see the first recorded instance of a species within the confines of Mount Rainier National Park, and I am NOT happy about finding it. This is common Teasel (Dipsacum fullonum), a nasty invasive. Immediately after I took the photo, I wrapped my hand around its scrawny neck and pulled it up by the root. It was one of two specimens of invasives I left on Arnie's desk Monday afternoon, although at the time I didn't know it would be a new record. Given its location, it will be easy for me to monitor the site during my lunch break. I'd have preferred finding Corallorhiza striata or a new lichen as my claim to fame in 2018, not something which inspired instantaneous vegicidal instincts. Still, the season is young. There's hope yet.

Unwelcome Gift

Day 361: Last spring, a friend sent me a packet of mixed wildflower seeds which she had gotten in a box of cereal as part of a nationwide distribution from General Mills. I read the list of species with growing apprehension. Many of the plants listed were considered invasive in some states. I sowed them in the Barren Wasteland (the poor-soil space between my house and garage), figuring to pull out anything I didn't want. The germination rate was very low in any event with California Poppies comprising the bulk of the undesirables. About the only thing I salvaged were a couple of Coreopsis, but tucked in among them was another sneaky-nasty which I missed until recently. I could tell it was a member of the Boraginaceae (borage family) from the leaves and therefore would need to be pulled, but I was also curious about just what evil plants General Mills was wantonly spreading throughout the country. Certainly their plan to help pollinators was ill-formed because many of these plants draw bees and butterflies at the expense of leaving native species unpollinated. Sure enough, when the buds opened a few days ago, I discovered that they had sent out Cynoglossum amabile, aka Chinese Forget-me-nots. If ever there was an unwelcome gift for a gardener, this bright blue bugger is it! Its seed capsules are tiny burrs which attach themselves to socks and pantlegs as part of their goal of world domination. Not on my watch! I've seen your true colours and now you die!

How Invasives Transport

Day 294: While we're on the subject of invasive and introduced species, I'd like to present an example of the process in action. While working on my Nisqually Land Trust site yesterday, I picked up litter and removed several old tires to a location where they are out of sight to await pickup by another crew. I had to walk through grass and weeds to reach the "drop" about 25 feet from the roadside. In the process, my clothing and shoes gathered an abundance of seeds, including those of Cleavers (Galium aparine). It is easy to see why Cleavers got its common name. The seed capsule is a round 1/8" burr covered in tiny hooks. While grass seeds can be rubbed out of socks and off trouser legs, Cleavers requires a painstaking, one-by-one removal. It took me twenty minutes to de-seed myself before going home.